Post-acute COVID-19 Syndrome Negatively Impacts Physical Function, Cognitive Function, Health-Related Quality of Life, and Participation.
Laura Tabacof, Jenna Tosto-Mancuso, Jamie Wood and 10 others
PMID 34686631WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with post-acute COVID-19 reported severe fatigue, cognitive impairment, and reduced participation.
Physical exertion triggered symptom exacerbation in 86% of patients, and full-time employment dropped from 76% to 41%. These findings suggest rehabilitation must account for post-exertional worsening.
Key findings
01Physical exertion was the most common trigger for symptom exacerbation, reported by 86% of patients.
02Cognitive impairment was screened as at least mild in 63% of patients, and problematic fatigue was reported by 78%.
03The proportion of patients in full-time work decreased from 76% pre-infection to 41% at follow-up.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study lacked a comparison group and pre-infection baseline measures for most outcomes, making it difficult to attribute changes specifically to PACS rather than other factors. Data were collected retrospectively via survey, which introduces recall bias. The sample was a convenience sample from a single interdisciplinary clinic, which may not represent the broader population of patients with long COVID. Non-condition-specific patient-reported outcome measures were used, which may increase the risk of inaccuracy. A significant portion of patients had negative PCR or antibody tests, relying on clinical diagnosis for inclusion.
Declared interests
The authors reported no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume the reduction in employment and quality of life is solely due to physiological disability from the virus. The study notes that broader pandemic impacts on workplaces and the lack of pre-infection baseline data make it difficult to isolate the specific effect of PACS on participation.